Discover the remarkable life of Vincent van Gogh... Free BONUS Inside! Vincent van Gogh is one of the world’s most famous artists, and his paintings are among the world’s most valuable. The archetypal starving artist, Vincent died aged just 37 by his own hand, poor, isolated, and, in his eyes, a failure. Yet, in Vincent’s life story we can see the evolution of a boy becoming a man becoming a great artist, whether his contemporaries could see it at the time or not. Discover a plethora of topics such as Vincent as a Boy Marrying a Prostitute Developing His Style in Paris The Incident with the Razor Van Gogh in the Asylum After van Gogh’s Suicide And much more!So if you want a concise and informative book on Vincent van Gogh, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!
You always get to know anything new from these books. In this case, I didn’t know about his religious family. Neither did I know that he translated the bible into different languages!! I also learnt more about his depression, and the exact date when he decided to slice his own ear off. Finally, I didn’t know anything about his caring brother, Theo. His whole life was devoted to van Gogh’s well-being, even at the expense of losing his job.
In van Gogh, the notion that a true artist must suffer for his art and that only the vulnerable can channel pure creativity takes form. It's a cruel twist that van Gogh died by his own hand in abject poverty while today his paintings are some of the most valuable in the world.
The obscurity along with van Gogh's time at the asylum and incident with a razor form the tragic basis of his condensed story. However deeper life story reveals him as a man who looked for truth and humanity in all that he did.
I enjoyed this book! I learned so much about Vincent Van Gogh, both the Artist and the man. It is so tragic that he died so young, for I think he had much more to offer those who appreciate his work and in the help he could have given other artists. His dream of living in an artists colony was manifested for only a short time, but if he could have lived in one longer and just lived alone, maybe he would have known happiness.
I’ve read Van Gogh’s letters to his brother Theo, as well as numerous articles and essays on his artwork, his struggles with mental health, and such joie de vivre as he was able to enjoy during his 37 years, and this book is certainly a significant exploration of his personality and his paintings. Recommended.
Cuando la iglesia abra sus puertas al arte, seguro surgirán aquellos extravagantes, marginados, que darán testimonio de Dios por medio de su arte. Van Gogh fue uno de esos que, desafortunadamente, no encontró espacio: "Van Gogh’s religious conviction was, however, not enough to guarantee him a position in the clergy, and he failed his theology entrance exam to the University of Amsterdam."
A gem of a book for art enthusiasts and anyone curious about the enigmatic life of such an iconic painter. Much more than a madman who cut off his own ear. Pity no illustrations accompany the book.
This is a Hourly History ebook, it was a good short overview about Vincent Van Gogh, he began drawing at an early young age and continued painting until his death at age 37.
In his earlier years he took a break from his paintings and studied the Bible and translated it into six different languages. Later picking up his painting again, he traveled to numerous cities, always meeting up with other artists trying to find better techniques of drawing and painting. He was depressed and sad most of his life. Getting so angry he cut off his own ear, he was bleeding bad and a doctor found him and saved him. The book tells about his two marriages.
It's sad that he did not become famous until after his death. His wife and his brother held numerous art exhibits showing hundreds of Vincent Van Gogh's painting that he had done throughout his lifetime to honor him. I enjoyed this book. I recommend it to everyone.
I was swept away by this short biography. I had heard the story before of Vincent Van Gogh slicing off his ear but there was so much more to the story that I didn't know. How very sad that Vincent shot himself, most likely because he did not want to be a burden on his brother any longer. How very interesting that his brother Theo, who cared for Vincent much of his life, soon died a few months after his brother and all the artwork went to Theo's wife who had only met Vincent a few times. A yet she took care of the collection and was an advocate. It is remarkable to realize that only five years had occurred between what Van Gogh considered his first break through art, "The Potato Eaters," to his last work of art, ""Wheatfield with Crows."
I loved this book because it was not pretentious, nor was it tedious. It allowed me to gain an introductory awareness of Van Gogh without investing more than a few hours of time.
It’s a full storyline, not a chopped up fact sheet.
I am grateful for this interesting book. If it had pictures referenced with it, it would be perfect.
I always wanted to know more about this great artist, and this book provided the means. It was a quick read and gave the necessary information. I did enjoy the writing.
Having read Lust For Life, his biography by Irving Stone in a novel form, decades ago, the character was forever remembered as one in an agony of a lonely existence. Seeing his works, later, in various museums across the world, and reproductions too of others, the artist kept coming through, vibrant and yet elusive.
This biography, again, brings him alive, vividly.
It's as if his soul - or at least his Vital body - isn't at rest but still in that agony of creation unfinished, and is invoked via his mention or that of his works. ****
"“When I have a terrible need of—shall I say the word—religion. Then I go out and paint the stars.”
"—Vincent van Gogh" ................................................................................................
"Theo visited van Gogh often and reacted positively to his new paintings, assuring him that he had a unique talent. Yet Theo’s appraisal of his brother’s experimentation at Saint-Paul was not without criticism. One painting in particular, The Starry Night (1889), was not to Theo’s taste. Completed around June 1889, The Starry Night is now one of the most recognizable works of art in the world and depicts the east-facing view from van Gogh’s bedroom window at Saint Paul. He painted this view dozens of times under different weather conditions but The Starry Night is the only view painted at night. Theo’s criticism of The Starry Night was that it did not seem very spontaneous. He said, “the search for some style is prejudicial to the true sentiment of things.”"
It's funny, they didn't see what seems so obvious now - the turmoil of the very heart and soul of the artist seeking to escape into the constant motion of the heavens, of the galaxies, the very universe. ................................................................................................
"“Someone has a great fire in his soul and nobody ever comes to warm themselves at it, and passers-by see nothing but a little smoke at the top of the chimney and then go on their way.”
"—Vincent van Gogh"
Most renowned writers couldn't have expressed him better. Why, most couldn't have done even so well, so precisely. ................................................................................................
Author mentions at separate times, two of works of the artist’s as being now in Pushkin Museum in Moscow. Since they were originally owned by French owners, one can only infer that their arrival since then in Moscow was via nazi theft during WWII. ................................................................................................
"“The sadness will last forever.”
"—Vincent van Gogh’s last words"
It wouldn't, had he been born in a free culture unlike that of abrahmic societies. ................................................................................................
"In January 1890, an article by critic Albert Aurier entitled “Unknown Painters: Vincent Van Gogh” was published in Mercure de France. Aurier was captivated by van Gogh’s work, impressed by its originality and power. Aurier’s words were so intensely praising that the article actually caused van Gogh to doubt himself. He wrote to Aurier and suggested that his insistence that, “he [Vincent] is the only painter that perceived the chromatism of objects with this intensity,” was better directed at Monticelli.
"Aurier’s article was published at a fortuitous time for van Gogh as his work was causing a stir at the exhibition of Les XX in Brussels. Van Gogh also sold one of his paintings at this show, the very first time he had made a sale. A painter named Anna Bloch bought the piece La Vigne Rouge (1888), which now resides at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow. Van Gogh’s work was also shown at the Independent Artistes exhibition in Paris around this time, and this selection of paintings led Claude Monet to name van Gogh the best artist in the show. In a healthy person, this newfound success might have had an invigorating effect, but for van Gogh, it caused a serious relapse. He experienced a severe depression that lasted for two months."
Monet praised him, that's high praise indeed! ................................................................................................
Here’s a portrait of a man who tried to live up to his conviction of good, fulfilled life with exquisite sensibilities and unalloyed humanity too great for the realities of the world he was born into. His life was life imitating art, and art was not imitating but expressing life as he saw. Yet, be it ever the play of the fate, the more he tried to be good-humored, the more estranged he became because he was an extraordinary artist constantly breaking away from confinement prejudicial to his ever sensitive and creative spirit. It was no other than the painter Vincent Van Gogh himself in his well-known portrait looking more in disappointment with the world than in madness against it.
As the late eminent Australian biographer of Ben Jonson Ian Donaldson once put, good biography is anything but a bland, chronological summation of a man’s life, and I am not intent on reciting the dates of from Gogh’s birth to death and in-betweens. Instead, I am all mind in positing what I think he was, other than the man with a bandaged self-mutilated ear because our sensory perception often betrays the truthfulness of what we see when stimulated to the external sensation. Indeed, Gogh was a disturbed man whose sensitivity found no elbow room in the world with which he so endeavored to have a long-lasting content relationship. It is not to say that Gogh was an archetypal self-imposed exiled artist who voluntarily distanced himself from ordinary life scenes. Hardly so. As shown in his letter to his beloved little brother Theo, who helped his misunderstood forlorn artist brother as ever, Gogh tried to be as good-humored and cheerful as he wanted. Still, it was the world that seemed to betray him with blows that bludgeoned his unalloyed wishes and noble aspirations.
Gogh’s paintings reflect his love of realism and reject artificial romanticism without the ideal romantic ambiance in vogue with the time. He was interested in all that existed as they were because discovering beauty in the coarseness of reality was his objective in achieving creative and experiential values. In this regard, Gogh was in the same artistic vein as Francoise Millet, whose paintings Gogh admired because Millet believed that treating the commonplace with the feeling of the sublime was what gave art its true power. The only difference between the masters of art was how to portray it with individual flairs of colors, techniques, and perspectives based on their tastes and judgments. Gogh’s ‘Potato Eaters” might not have that romantic dignity surrounding the hardscrabble peasants. Still, they were unforgettably expressive in the nuanced struggles and strife they had to bear and live with.
Perhaps the uneasy cohabitation of the independent spirit and the loving heart distinguished Gogh from his famous peers who had the practical sense to reconcile their creative souls to social needs. Moreover, Gogh lost a sense of direction when he realized that a man of the cloth wasn’t his cloth. The existential frustrations from the confliction of the will then added to his already innate fragile sensitivity, a hereditary mental trait running in his maternal family. Nevertheless, Gogh continuously endeavored to fend it off and conquer it, even when the citizens of Arles, where he dreamed of building a haven for his kindred spirits, united to expel him from the city he once cherished. However, one good-hearted postman continued to give him a touch of kindness till he voluntarily admitted himself into a mental asylum for the peace of his mind and others’.
Upon reading this elegantly narrated life of Vincent Van Gogh, I realized the truth of the genius only took some time for its brilliance to shine, no matter how long it would take. Who would have thought Vincent Van Gogh, who once sold only one of his works out of hundreds, would be looking at his admirers in the constellation of brilliant painters in heaven? For those who are creators of arts in all genres, famous or hidden, amateur or professional, the story of Vincent Van Gogh will be a consolation to the heart and hope to the spirit that never knows the end.
One of the symptoms of my ADHD is an intensity of emotions. I’m not particularly familiar with the world of fine art, yet Van Gogh’s paintings have spoken to me since I discovered them as a child. I find them so heart-achingly beautiful that they evoke a visceral response. I'm finally taking the time to learn more about the painter that touches my soul.
While this book is brief, it’s informative and interesting. It begins with a look at Van Gogh’s childhood, then chronicles his difficult relationship with his father, his religious fervor, and the lifelong support of his brother Theo. It includes his mental health struggles and erratic friendships with other artists, and touches on major milestones in his brief life, such as the various places he lived and the works he created during different periods. It’s a nice, concise history of the life of one of the most famous and talented artists the world has known. I feel it’s a very good starting point for one wishing to learn more about this incredibly gifted yet tormented man.
I only knew the very basic outlines before reading this (insanity, tragic life) and the main thing I got from this is a much better appreciation of how much he suffered.
I was moved by how supportive his brother Theo was throughout his entire life, sending him large sums of money he could barely afford and never faltering in his admiration and love.
Also realized that Van Gogh created many if not most of his best known works while literally in an insane asylum in a state of intense misery and confinement.
I was more touched than I expected, since I already knew the general story, and left thinking what I take away from all this ...
I am not a big fan of van Goghs style but I did enjoy reading this brief bio of his life which was tragic and sad for most of it. He seemed like a man who really struggled to find himself and never really did. He was mentally unstable and frequently went home to live with his parents although he and his father had a difficult relationship. If it weren’t for his brother, Theo, he probably would have died much sooner and possibly never been discovered as a great artist. I was inspired to look up some of the paintings that were noted in this history.
I choose this book as I'm a artist starting out it is very moving and I can realate myself to his as I struggle with mental health problems and had parents that don't see art or craft as a job If recommend this book to anyone in art world or who struggle to see how he carried on even with all rejection he was getting It was a sad ending tho And it's now he more famous if only poeple didn't judge him at the time he may had a better outcome
◾Otro con problemas de cachimiro💲 ◾Le gustaba leer ◾Provenía de una familia muy religiosa ◾SOLITARIO, DEPRESIVO, ARTISTA AUTODIDACTA ◾Murió en la pobreza. ◾Hoy día, sus pinturas son de las más valiosas del mundo ◾Se casó con una prostituta ◾Se cortó una oreja ◾Estuvo recluido en un hospital siquiátrico ◾Ahí pintó la noche estrellada ◾El loco pelirrojo tuvo un final muy triste
I am a fan of Van Gogh’s paintings and knew something about his life.
The book was a very enjoyable read because it talks about the evolvement of his art during the various phases of his life. It was very heartbreaking to read about his bouts of depression and feelings of loneliness. The book offers us an insight into his complex personality.
The sad tragic life of van Gogh. Living off tobacco and alcohol? Not good. He and his father, both professing Christians, did NOT live according to the Word of God, causing problems in their relationship and their lives. That van Gogh had God-given talent is without question. That he couldn't exercise that talent fully through self-sabotage is equally without question.
This book nicely summarizes the ambitions and difficulties experienced by Vincent van Gogh during his life. Severe workaholism fueled by alcohol, cigarettes, and mental instability produced an astonishing body of art, which only became appreciated after his untimely death due to suicide.
I was familiar with a few of van Gogh's more famous paintings and I knew of his struggle of his struggle with mental illness and the incident of cutting off his ear. Other than that, I knew little of the story of his life.
This concise book did a good job of covering that. Although short, it contained plenty of facts. It covers the friction between his father and him, and his lifelong struggle with mental illness which was most likely bipolar disorder or what used to be called manic-depression.
Among other things covered were his life of living in poverty, his lifelong journey of developing his own style, the devotion of his brother Theo, his transition from the religious life to that of an artist, the fact that his paintings didn't sell and weren't realized or appreciated until after his death, and that success eluded him due to his life being tragically cut short.
The book provided good coverage of a short life and I found it interesting to read.
It is concise and neatly organized. After reading this, though, I feel like Van Gogh might be overrated. I think reading this book was time well-spent, nonetheless.
I am going to the Van Gogh Experience in a couple weeks and wanted to know something about him. This short book has inspired me to read more about him.
This is not a detailed, scholarly study, but is a simple recounting of the major events of Van Gogh's life. The five star rating is because the book does an exceptional job of providing a true overview of the artists life in a simple, quick read.
I loved it, very informative and well written. I wish he could see how much he is appreciated now. "I cannot invent my painting completely, on the contrary I find it already in nature, all I have to do is succeed in recognizing its presence here." rip Vincent 🖤
A very quick little read about the life of Van Gogh. Although short, incredibly informative and well researched, in such a short time I was still deeply affected by the depths of his mental decline and how this adapted his works. I will definitely read more from this series of books.